Does Russia think that any old lie will do and, if so, could it be right? The country’s representative at the International Court of Justice in the Hague on March 7
claimed that the main source for the vast amounts of weapons and ammunition used by fighters of the self-proclaimed ‘Donetsk and Luhansk people’s republics’ [DPR, LPR] “are stockpiles inherited by Ukraine in 1991 from the Soviet Army”, as well as “the retreating Ukrainian army”.
The assertion elicited incredulous gasps, humorous Internet memes and one or two swift fact-checking articles from, for example,
InformNapalm. In general, it passed unnoticed, as do many other such obvious lies. The western media need simple formulations and generally opt for a ‘Kyiv accuses’ and ‘Moscow denies’ format, with that regardless of the amount of direct confirmation of the accusations, including from journalists providing live coverage.
InformNapalm, Bellingcat and other investigative journalists have provided compelling proof of tanks, missiles and other sophisticated weaponry used by the militants in Donbas. Almost all post-date the Soviet era and have never been in the possession of the Ukrainian army.
